Roundup: Inside the tricky politics of special legislative sessions, the Georgia school shooting, Chinese influence, and e-bikes and Taylor Swift

It’s Saturday, September 7, and we’d like to welcome you to the weekly State and Local Roundup. We start with the tricky politics of special legislative sessions.

Lawmakers in a handful of states have been unexpectedly busy despite—or, let’s face it, because of—an election looming in two months.

Several state legislatures have been called into special session by governors, many of whom want to see their top priorities addressed before the November general election. There are only 11 gubernatorial races this year, so most governors are not up for reelection But there’s still plenty at stake for them in the upcoming contests: ballot measures that could pass, the makeup of legislative majorities and congressional delegations, and, in one case, the governor’s own bid for U.S. Senate.

Colorado Compromise

It was a pair of ballot measures that spurred a special session in Colorado.?

Lawmakers there reached a deal this week that would keep property tax relief measures off the ballot this November and for the next six years. The grand bargain came together Wednesday, when Democratic Gov. Jared Polis signed a bipartisan package of tax cuts into law and the proponents of the property tax relief initiatives withdrew their ballot questions.

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News to Use

Trends, Common Challenges, Cool Ideas, FYIs and Notable Events

Guns

Georgia lawmakers discuss gun safety bills. Gun safety advocates representing nonprofits, law enforcement and mental health specialists met Thursday morning with a Georgia Senate committee studying gun safety to discuss the urgent need to pass laws protecting young people in the wake of Wednesday’s deadly school shooting in Barrow County. The committee meeting was scheduled prior to Wednesday’s school shooting, which killed two students, two teachers and injured several others. Georgia senators and gun safety experts spent two hours discussing potential legislation, such as offering state tax credits to give people a financial incentive to purchase safes to securely store their firearms, strengthening laws around mental health evaluations prior to firearm purchases and making it illegal for parents who allow minors to access firearms that were kept in an unsecured place.

Corruption

Former aide to New York governors charged with being a Chinese foreign agent. Linda Sun, who held numerous posts in New York state government, including deputy chief of staff for Gov. Kathy Hochul and deputy diversity officer for former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, was arrested Tuesday morning. Federal prosecutors said Sun, at the request of Chinese officials, blocked representatives of the Taiwanese government from having access to the governor’s office and shaped governmental messaging to align with the priorities of the Chinese government, among other things. In return, her husband got help for his business activities in China—a financial boost that prosecutors said allowed the couple to buy their multimillion-dollar property in Manhasset, New York, a condominium in Hawaii for $1.9 million and luxury cars including a 2024 Ferrari.

Abortion

Florida health agency targets abortion rights ballot measure. The Florida Agency for Health Care Administration launched a webpage Thursday bashing the proposed state constitutional amendment to restore abortion access beyond six weeks, prompting Florida Democrats to call out the use of state funds against the measure. Florida Democrats responded that the webpage violates Florida statutes barring state employees from using their authority to interfere with an election. With just 60 days until the election, Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration is ramping up its campaign against the effort to protect abortion access in the state constitution. On Wednesday, the Tampa Bay Times broke the news that the Florida Department of State is reviewing 36,000 signatures among the 1 million collected to place Amendment 4 on the ballot.

Infrastructure

The collapse of the school bus. School bus systems nationwide are suffering from funding cuts and driver shortages. It’s gotten so bad that public schools in cities like Baltimore and Philadelphia are paying parents to drive their kids to school, with families in Philly eligible to net $300 a month. Declining bus ridership led to a milestone in 2022: For the first time ever, the majority of U.S. kids got to school in a private vehicle. Between 2019 and 2023, the number of U.S. school bus drivers fell by 15%. Those who remain still don’t make much money: an average of $20 an hour, with just 32 hours of work a week, according to the Economic Policy Institute. The collapse also reflects where schools have been built: school sites have been selected for cheap land, big parking lots and wide roads, rather than nestled within neighborhoods.

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Picture of the Week

Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont announced this week the installation of new welcome signs greeting drivers as they pass into Connecticut. The signs have stirred up a little angst among the residents of neighboring states. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy even weighed in, asking Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg on X if it is “legal to lie on road signs”? At issue is a sign reading, "Welcome to Connecticut, Home of the Pizza Capital of the United States," which has been placed on Interstate 95 and I-84 entering Connecticut from New York. Murphy also responded on X, replying to Lamont's announcement tweet by saying, "You're not even the pizza capital of the tri-state area." Other signs include, "Welcome to Connecticut, Home of the Basketball Capital of the World," which greets drivers entering Connecticut from Massachusetts, and "Welcome to Connecticut, Stop for a bite in the Foodie Capital of New England,” between Rhode Island and Connecticut.

Government in Numbers

1 minute

The amount of time it took for all 220 e-bike vouchers to be claimed by Denver residents.

In the last few years, the city's office of Climate Action, Sustainability and Resiliency has been doling out free money for e-bikes. The program has been wildly popular. On Tuesday at 11 a.m., Denver made an additional 220 vouchers available. At 11:01 a.m., they were all claimed. Emily Gedeon, a spokesperson for Denver's climate office, said there's been enormous demand. About 17,000 people tried to get a voucher on Tuesday, she told us, more than 77 times the amount available. Denver will offer more later this year, she said, and added that the state also offers $450 rebates at points-of-sale.

ICYMI

Bus agencies are turning to California for their 'tap to pay' fare systems

Transit agencies across the country are turning to the state for help in ditching cash fares and adopting an affordable contactless pay system.

By Daniel C. Vock

Cities are increasingly embracing violence interventions programs to control deadly violence

Initial research indicates the approach is working—saving lives and money. But supporters admit more analysis is needed.

By Katherine Barrett & Richard Greene

Trees aren't just pretty to look at. They're also good for yew.

More U.S. cities are planting trees as a way to improve public health and reduce climate threats. New data shows they might be on the right track.

By Kaitlyn Levinson